Hawaii’s 2018 primary election is less than a year away, and already one can feel the rumblings of a major battle looming among Democratic Party heavyweights.
U.S. Rep. Colleen Hanabusa announced on Sept. 1 her intention to run for governor, challenging fellow political veteran and incumbent Gov. David Ige. And with Lt. Gov. Shan Tsutsui indicating he won’t run for re-election, the Aug. 11 ballot is beginning to open up.
There’s the vacant seat in Congress. There’s the plethora of candidates lining up to be the next lieutenant governor — at last count, at least five prominent Democrats are eyeing the seat. And of course, there are the dozens of other down-ballot races that will fill the streets with signs and our mailboxes with fliers.
All of this challenges the poor voter, who will face a collection of longtime politicos in a de facto single-party state, all with lofty ambitions, vague promises and plenty of special-interest money to guide them. At the top of this 2018 pile sit Ige and Hanabusa, along with other possible gubernatorial candidates, Kauai Mayor Bernard Carvalho and Republican state Rep. Andria Tupola.
Instead of waiting for their sales pitches, Hawaii residents should demand that the gubernatorial candidates provide tangible solutions to the state’s most intractable problems: affordable housing and its constant companion, homelessness; the future of public education; clean energy goals; the increasing pressures of tourism and environmental degradation. Guiding future development will be critical to the state’s quality of life, especially along Honolulu’s rail transit line, which is scheduled to be completed in, ahem, 2025.
Ige can’t simply ride on his record. While he boasts of building affordable rental units and providing permanent housing for the homeless, the homeless tents on the streets tells us he’s nowhere near the estimated 24,500 affordable housing units Hawaii needs in the next five years.
The other candidates will have to explain how it can be done better; for that matter, so will Ige.
Emblematic of the problem was the recent unraveling of a $100 million public-private partnership to build affordable housing in Kalihi, a project started under the Abercrombie administration and now collapsing under Ige’s. The Hawaii Public Housing Authority board terminated the master development agreement with The Michaels Organization, which was to build 450 new homes next to the Towers at Kuhio Park. The reasons are unclear, but the failure is disappointing.
Ige also talks about how he changed the direction of the state Department of Education.
This was accomplished by the Board of Education dismissing a capable superintendent and pledging to shift power from the central administration to the schools. But with the exception of a generous new contract for the teachers union, we’re still in the wait-and-see mode; the new schools chief, Christina Kishimoto, began work Aug. 1 and has only just put her senior management team in place.
If other candidates want to change Ige’s direction, they will have to explain how disrupting the DOE yet again will be good for kids.
Tourism has been on a blistering pace, with not enough discussion of its impact on Hawaii’s communities and the natural environment. Better regulation and taxation of lodging in neighborhoods also loom. It’s all a delicate balance of commerce and conservation that needs farsighted, long-term planning solutions.
Perhaps the biggest elephant in the room is Honolulu’s rail project, now careening toward Middle Street. After a contentious debate with Honolulu Mayor Kirk Caldwell and rail officials, the Legislature earlier this month approved, and Ige signed, a $2.4 billion bill to pay for the final stretch of the project to Ala Moana Center.
Decisions about development along the line cannot be limited to the city; the state needs to be a full partner to ensure that state and city land use policies point toward the same goal: housing and other improvements that make living in a denser urban core both affordable and attractive.
That means at least two critical years of working with Caldwell and the city, without the pointless bickering that for too long has characterized state-city relations.
For the next four or eight years, the governor will have to set the direction toward a better Hawaii — clearly and firmly, with a confident leadership that inspires others to follow. We’re eagerly waiting.
